Hold Fast Leeds Dock: Inside the incredible floating book and plant shop bringing smiles to customers' faces

Eight months after the launch of Hold Fast, housed in the cosy hull of a former coal barge, Victoria and her husband Chris are seeing the rewards of their hard work. The couple spent months painstakingly renovating the barge by hand - using recycled materials to transform the boat into an independent book and plant shop.

The barge, Marjorie R, is steeped in history. Built in 1946, her purpose was to travel up and down the canal each day supplying Thornhill power station with fuel. And now Marjorie has had a new lease of life, with customers flocking to pick up new and second hand books, as well as Chris’ treasured plants from its deck.

“It’s been fantastic,” Victoria told the Yorkshire Evening Post. “It’s lovely seeing people’s faces when they walk in. When we started, a lot of people asked us why we didn’t just get a new boat, as it would have been so much easier.

"But it’s Marjorie! There’s something about this boat that we wanted to keep. And it’s really been worth it.”

The pair have been moored in Leeds Dock for almost eight years, and have loved becoming a bigger part of the community over the last eight months.

“I love the interactions with customers,” Victoria added. “We have so many good chats and meet so many lovely people. There’s a big trend towards self-care at the moment and I think that’s something you can practise in any independent - not just ours. It’s taking that little bit of time out for yourself.

“It might be a little out of the way, and it’s probably easier to order off Amazon, but there are so many mental and physical benefits to having those conversations.”

Victoria, a former library worker and creative writing teacher, carefully selects each of the books on offer - including second-hand books for the price of a coffee and children’s books for as little as £1. Preserving books and the practice of reading, particularly among children and young people, is something Victoria is passionate about.

She said: “Reading is better for your empathy, particularly with children. You need to read about people you can identify with, but also about people you can’t. I think it makes you more tolerant and able to see that other people have a whole life that you’re not part of, a glimpse into their world.”

Victoria recognised the difficult landscape for independent businesses, who are grappling with rising costs and challenges outside of their control.

“There is insecurity,” she said. “No matter how established an independent business seems, you are still vulnerable - you don’t have the backing that a massive international or chain has.”

But things are looking up for the floating bookshop, and Marjorie R was recently awarded Flagship of the Year 2023 by National Historic Ships UK, one of six vessels to get a special broad pennant to fly at their masthead, as well as a brass plaque.

“I had a little cry,” Victoria said. “It was lovely - we have put a lot of work in, and it was nice to get recognition for the importance of these older boats and what they can give.”